Profepa Rescues 8 Black Iguanas in Illegal Possession

The black iguana is a native species of the state of Morelos and is listed as endangered

CUERNAVACA, Morelos — The Special Prosecutor’s Office for Environmental Protection (Profepa) conducted the rescue of eight specimens of the Mexican spiny iguana, or black iguana species (Ctenosaura pectinata), in the city of Cuernavaca, Morelos, which were in the illegal possession of a person.

In a statement, it explained that after the request by the Deputy Public Prosecutor’s Office (MPF), staff of the federal delegation of Profepa in the state discovered it was five females and three males, who had also suffered from lesions on their skulls and extremities.

Also, the MPF asked the prosecutor with the corresponding expertise to determine whether they were specimens of wildlife regulated by the Mexican Official Standard NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010.

The specimens remain under the protection of this delegation by chain of custody and will be available to the District Court in the criminal case 006/2016.

The alleged perpetrator was remanded to the Third District Court in Cuernavaca, Morelos, which gave rise to the criminal case number 006/2016 and could reach a potential sentence of one to nine years in prison and a fine for the equivalent of 300-3000 days of the minimum wage.

Note that the black iguana is a native species of the state of Morelos and is listed as threatened and an endemic species within the NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010.